So you’ve traveled and now you’re home. What’s next?

You’ve met people and seen places, climbed mountains and visited waterfalls, you’ve eaten your weight in local food and a bit more in local drinks. But then it all finishes and you’re somehow home, ready to tackle reality. But are you?

I’ve been home for a good 3 days before going out on another 3 weeks trip (omg Iceland, it’s like a fairytale, except it’s real and it’s absolutely breathtaking). So all in all, after all the trips ended, I’ve now been back in Holland for a little bit over a week. It’s confusing and overwhelming and fluffy and overbearing and I have my own bed back but no real clothes for real life and I need a job but I also want to make a photo scrapbook and what have I been doing with my life, please help.

You should read that really long last sentence within one breath and you’ll get a vibe of how the last few days felt like. Now, keep your smile up and your determination close by, fun things are coming up, I promise.

I’ve tried to anticipate how returning home will feel like but it didn’t really work as planned. Here’s where I’m at as we speak and how life looks when you return home after being away for a few months.

My need to travel has temporarily gone away

I’ve always had this urge to go places, anywhere and everywhere. I wanted to see and try and walk around, to taste and snap photos and chit chat with random people. I would get restless if I wouldn’t travel somewhere new at least once a month.

Well, don’t freak out, it’s still there, I still wanna go to Africa and visit the South of India, check out New Zealand and return back to South America to spend some time in Ecuador. And I will. But now? Now I crave having a wardrobe where my clothes are (almost) perfectly folded, settling into my apartment with my stuff and spending time with people I’ve missed.

My interest in owning stuff has diminished to the extreme

I already went through a major clean-up before my trip but coming back showed me I cared even less about clothes, accessories, books I’ve never loved or gifts that were not a good match with me. So I threw away and donated so much in the last few days. It sure is a great feeling. The problem? I barely have any clothes left.

Getting a job is a full time job

To all my fellow “I quit my job and went traveling the world” travelers, I feel you. Unless you were extra smart (I wasn’t) and arranged everything up for yourself for when you get back, times are tough. These are the times when the urge to go somewhere far away comes back but I’ve been wearing my big girl pants every day since I came back. So I know that would be running from reality which is not how adults deal with life. Right? Right?

If you know a place that would a good fit for a Communication & PR girl like myself, preferably based in the Netherlands, hit me. Seriously, send me a message, I will make you coffee and call you pretty names for as long as you want. (my Linkedin profile is here, wink wink)

Everything is exactly the same

I know people who dread this, I find it immensely satisfying because it makes things easier. Except for a few cute babies who popped up in the last few months, friends are still loving and sarcastic, the weather is still moody and Dutch still sounds funny. My parents have the same worries and the train company is still late with every single occasion. And while I’ve definitely changed, my core is the same.

Sure, it was absolutely fantastic to wake up to the waves crashing on the beach in Colombia, but it’s unrealistic to want it in my life right now. Yes, I loved the randomness of meeting people in my travels, the gorgeous hikes, the ever-changing food and complete freedom, but I also love change and new opportunities.

Routine is not always bad

Okay, hear me out here. Travel is supposed to be a wow element in your life, right? A break from routine and boredom, absolute freedom accessible for longer only to the brave enough ones. Well, in some way travel became my new routine. An exciting one, sure, but a routine nevertheless. Meeting people followed more or less the same pattern, trying out new food brought more or less the same reactions, even natural wonders became another beautiful thing I’ve seen. So in a way, this new routine is good, it’s building me up for extra cool stuff in the future.

Let’s wrap it up:

go home

clear out your home

clear out your head: want a job or want to go traveling again?

go for it: get the dream job or look for ways to get back on the road

stay motivated, everything takes time

have good coffees with nice people and wine nights with people you love

enjoy, travel blues are a thing only if you let become a thing

and of course: recommend me for a cool job, haha! but really, here’s my linkedin account.

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I drink wine & travel places. Hi!

Life with Mada came to life after I've quit my job and went to South America for 4 months. Join me for the fun stories, real stuff and the occasional backpacker rants.
I'll keep it real, pinky promise. I travel to feed the soul and love traveling like living.
I'll also tell you about the wines I drink and the wisdom they bring me.